Thursday, August 13, 2009

When It Rains, It Pours

Do you hear that? That's the sound of our roof leaking. In two separate places. Ironically, we just had a guy out to look at the roof two days ago, and according to him, our roof is in 'great shape!"

Liar, liar, pants on fire. I'm so horribly frustrated right now. I was going to post a before and after picture of the room that we just redid, but since there is now a leak in said room, I am slightly less excited about anything and everything house related.

Every time we try to get a little head start on a savings account for the baby, something comes up. And a new roof ain't exactly cheap if you know what I mean.

I know that it sounds trivial in times like this, when people are losing their jobs, losing family members, battling illnesses, and I am trying really hard to keep things in perspective, but can I bother you all for some prayers, not only for the roof, but also for my attitude? Me being sullen and grouchy is not going to help this process in any way, but for some reason I am having trouble shaking it off this time.

We have several people coming out to do estimates in the next few days, and we are concerned with finding an honest, reliable company. If any of you have had experience with something like this (and I'm sure many of you have) I would really appreciate any advice or insight you may have.

4 comments:

I have not had to do anything like replacing a roof, but my father and father in law are in construction. I think the best bet for getting someone reliable is asking friends and family for recommendations. That is how my dad gets most of his business and then 15 years later goes back and remodels their house because they remember the work and price was good.

I have to say that not always the cheapest price is the best deal in construction. Make sure you say a timeline of having it done. And pay in portions, not all at once, that way if the person ends up being shoddy, you aren't out as much.

Bah. Good luck! Do you have a warranty of any sort that came with your house? Maybe that would cover part of it?

Aw, I'm sorry! We've all been in your situation and experienced the same grouchiness in some form or another - car repairs, house problems, etc. See if anyone you know has an Angie's List subscription and ask to use it to log in and read reviews of contractors. I find the resource very helpful! You can also ask the contractor for references and call their past clients. It's a lot of work, but definitely LESS work than dealing with a less-than-reliable person.